Arkham
by LordShel85
Summary: A man wakes up, not knowing where or who he is. Soon, he meets the most sinister force he has ever encountered. ONESHOT


_Hello there. This fic started as a school project, but I ended up deciding to post it. Also not that I had to start with that first sentence, so if anyone can think of a better way to start it, please inform me._

"Arkham"

As I sat in the dark cell, I wondered how I got there. Through what seemed to be a padded wall, I heard "Roger! I insist that you check out the purple tornado in that cabinet!"

I sat in the cell for what seemed like hours. The entire time, my brain was overloading. I couldn't remember anything. Who I was, where I was, how I got here, etc… Finally, I snapped, "Hello! Somebody! Where am I!?"

A cultured, somewhat high-pitched male voice answered, "Well, well. A new boy."

"Where am I? Who are you?" I nearly screamed.

"Where? You're in the real world. But most folks call it Arkham," the voice giggled before continuing, "And you can just call me J."

"Can you get me out of here?" I pleaded. There was no answer. "Hello!" I cried. Suddenly, the door swung open, allowing light to pour in. Peering out the doorway, I saw another cell in front of me, and a hall lined with metal doors.

From somewhere down the hall, a piercing scream was emitted. It was followed by a bone-chilling, hyena like laugh. The laugh echoed through the dirty hallway, chilling me to the core. Against my better judgment (maybe it was some morbid curiosity) I walked towards the source of the laugh.

As I passed by the various cells, I could hear noises and voices permeating from them.

"Mommy? Mommy, where are you?"

"The shadows! My god the shadows!"

"Daddy! Help me daddy! He's hurting me! The Dog's hurting me!"

Another scream echoed through the hallway. Suddenly, I slipped and fell on my back. After I stood back up, I looked to see what I slipped on. That was when I noticed the orange jumpsuit I was wearing. Shaking off the thoughts that were popping up, I looked to the ground. Blood! I had slipped on blood! Looking for the source, I saw that the trail led to a doorway ahead of me and to the left. As silently as I could, I made my way to the door. I hesitated before I grasped the doorknob. _Should I do this? I can still just look for an exit._ Again, a morbid curiosity overcame me. Grasping the doorknob, I opened it silently. Somehow, the man on the other side heard me. Covering up the table he was facing, he spun around.

His appearance was that of nightmares. His slicked back hair was a dark pine needle green. His skin was chalk white. His blood red lips were curled into a giant, ghastly grin. His most striking feature however, was his bright green eyes. They looked as if they were peering into your very psyche. He was garbed in a straight jacket and ragged pants.

"Well hello!" He shouted gleefully. "You must be the new guy. Remember me? I'm J!" Behind him, the covers started twitching. Following my gaze, he noticed it as well. Quickly reaching behind him, he pressed down, and the twitching stopped.

"What's under there?" I asked. His grin grew. Now however, he looked like a shark about attack.

"Oh, it's just a little piece of art I'm working on." He threw the covers back, and let out a long, maniacal laugh. That hyena laugh. A sudden sense of dread surrounded me as I stepped forward to look at his "art". I almost threw up. It wasn't art. It was a body.

I tumbled back and scurried away as J proudly displayed his "art." "Isn't it marvelous?" he asked, spreading his arms wide and giggling. "Note the ancient runes carved across the abdomen. The mathematical equation beyond the comprehension of mere men." He stopped for a moment and cocked his head. "The blood splatters certainly are a nice touch." He added, waggling his eyebrows.

"Why…. _How_ could you do this?" I questioned, pressing myself against the wall. "Who is that?"

"That? To tell the truth, I don't know." He let out a manically gleeful laugh. "As to your other question, it seemed funny at the time. Well hell, it still does!" He covered the body back up.

"This is a dream," I whispered, grabbing my head and squeezing my eyes shut. I couldn't believe what was going on could possibly be real.

"Oh, this isn't a dream," J chuckled, moving towards me, "You'll find that everything is _quite_ real," he whispered menacingly in my ear. Then he drove a knife into my leg, causing me to scream. "SEE!!!" He shouted. "Real as can be!" The last thing I saw before darkness enveloped me was J raising the bloody knife over his head as he let out another hyena laugh.

I awoke to the sound of a hand drill. I could feel pain shooting up my leg. Realizing I was lying down, I tried to sit up. I couldn't. That was when I realized that I was strapped to a table. My arms, legs, and head were bound by what seemed to be leather straps.

"Welcome to the shock therapy room." J said, stepping out of the shadows. "I'm a regular here." His grin spread wider, and had an ominous look to it. "These straps have a tendency to break, so I'm going to reinforce them just for you." He took a handful of screws from a drawer. "Now lie still," he began to chuckle darkly. After a few moments, he had put all the screws through the leather straps. "Okie dokie. Shall we begin?"

J walked over to a box on the far wall. Removing the cobwebs covering it, he opened the casing. Wrapping his bony fingers around a lever inside, he pulled it down. Nothing happened. Frowning, he turned to me. "Sorry about that. It tends to malfunction. I guess they overused it on me. I'll be right back." He left the room and shut the door behind him.

Sweat dripped down my forehead as I strained against my bonds. The straps were too tight however, and the added pressure of the screws made them even stronger. I settled back down, and awaited my fate.

"Alright!" J shouted as he opened the door. "Let's try this again." He grabbed the lever again and pulled. My back arched sharply and I bit my lip as electric currents ran through my body. Before too long, I fell into a blissful darkness.

"Wakie wakie," Slowly, I opened my eyes. "Good. I was scared you might be dead already." J giggled. I turned my eyes to look him. He was now wearing an apron that said, "Kill the Cook." _Where did he get that,_ I wondered. "Now, let's take a break from the shock shall we? Good." Taking his hand drill, he aimed it at my bicep.

"WAIT!!!" I shouted, my eyes bulging nearly out of their sockets. "Why? Why do this? I didn't do anything to you. J just chuckled.

"But how am I supposed to have my fun? Really, it's not that easy to find new friends to play with," he paused, "even if you're as good looking as me." He rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes. "Now that you mention it, I've done this already. Let's try something new."

My eyes widened again and he pulled out the knife he had stabbed me with. Instead of driving it into me again, he used it to slice the leather that was binding me. "If you can find your way out, you're free to go."

_That easy? _I thought, _it can't be._ He waved his hand, motioning for me to go. Quickly sitting up, I ran for the door. Throwing it open, I rushed into what seemed to be a dark, damp basement. Finding the stairs, I began my ascent.

"Time to play a game!" J's voice rang in my ears. Spinning around, I looked for him. He wasn't anywhere that I could see. As I continued down the hall, J continued speaking. "What are the rules you ask? They're simple. I mess with your mind, you try to keep your sanity."

Suddenly, voices rang through my head. A ran, trying to escape them. As I turned a corner, a choir of mutilated children met me at the corner. They were singing what I could only describe as gibberish. I knew however, that it must have been some ancient language. J seemed to adore that.

I spun around and ran down another hall. "Ooh! That sure was scary, wasn't it?" J cackled. At this point, my head was spinning. The walls seemed to shift and warp. Colors and shadows flashed by at blinding speeds. Trying desperately to stop the pounding in my chest, I began to slow down. I could feel my legs buckle under me. Falling to the floor, J's voice filled my head again, "Looks like I win."

"Hold him!" The doctor shouted to the surrounding orderlies. The patient was thrashing and screaming. "He's having another breakdown." The orderlies grabbed the patient and pinned him to the floor. "John! John, please! Calm down!" The doctor pulled a syringe and a bottle of "sleep juice." Quickly filling the syringe, he plunged it into the John's arm. Within seconds, he had calmed down, and was falling into a slumber. "Put him back in the cell. I should have known another evaluation would be dangerous."

Deep within Arkham Asylum, in the darkened basement, existed a single cell. From within that cell, came a bone-chilling, hyena laugh.


End file.
